KNOM is a radio station with community at its core; we exist to serve the community and, in so many ways, draw our strength and energy from the community. We are so blessed with the goodwill and selflessness of those in our region.

Exemplifying this spirit of volunteerism are the local deejays who give 1 to 4 hours of their time, each week, to host specialty music shows on KNOM, during evenings or weekend afternoons. Their positions are completely pro bono; our community DJs – like Will Gemar, pictured at top – come to our station out of a love for music and a desire to share a bit of themselves with our listeners.

At KNOM, we’re fortunate to have dedicated supporters, dedicated listeners, and dedicated members of our local community. Together, it’s an incredible family that makes our mission possible.

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This article is part of the September 2013 edition of our newsletter, The Nome Static.

]]>1341Music Review 2012http://www.knom.org/wp/blog/2013/01/02/music-2012-what-you-listened-to-matters/
http://www.knom.org/wp/blog/2013/01/02/music-2012-what-you-listened-to-matters/#commentsThu, 03 Jan 2013 02:32:53 +0000http://www.knom.org/blog/wp/?p=2623Music can be a powerful thing. We associate where we are, what we are doing, who we are with, how happy we are, all in relation to the music pumping out of our speakers…

Bulletproof.

We invited a few friends over to the Volunteer House for New Year’s and had the dance party to rival all dance parties, glow sticks and all. I took DJ shift for the first half of our evening before letting DJ Josh do his thing. We danced until our legs were sore, took a break to check out the fireworks on East Beach at midnight (Happy New Year!), and came back to dance some more. How did the music selection influence our night? Glad you asked.

Let me present you with some of our New Year’s Dance Party playlist:

Gogol Bordello: Start Wearing Purple. First, I used to jump around to this song alone, in my room. Now? I dance to it with friends. It was my first Crew Pick at KNOM, and the first of many What-On-Earth-??? moments I provided western Alaska with these past few months.

Us? Hipsters? Hardly. We’re Alaskan.

Taylor Swift: I Knew You Were Trouble. There was a time I couldn’t stand the continuously heart-broken blonde beauty, but what can I say? Swift has grown on me this year. She may be pop, but she does her genre well. And she’s diversifying. Listen for her dubstep influences as she sings Oh-Oh-Trouble-Trouble-Trouble in the chorus.

From the MULAN soundtrack: I’ll Make a Man Out of You. Back when I used to do community theatre, we played this song in the women’s changing room whenever any of us had to portray a male character on stage. Also, Mulan is one of our favorite movies at the KNOM House. Girl power. Rawr.

Arcade Fire: Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains). The first time I heard this I was living in a suburb and working bookstore retail in a mall. Needless to say, the song made sense to me. Josh and I jokingly quarrel about Arcade Fire and their threat to the population with their hipsterism (what is a hipster anyway?), but I like them regardless. So there. Sprawl II is a compromise in our ideals: AF may be hipsters, but this song is danceable, and, well, good.

Glow stick dance party- it’s a rave!

Ellie Goulding: Anything Could Happen. After weeks of gray, rainy skies, Lucus, the final volunteer, arrived in Nome the first week of September with sunshine and blue skies. This song played on KNOM as we drove home from the airport with Lucus. Just like that, it became the volunteer crews’ unofficial song for our 2012-2013 service year.

DJ Earworm: United States of Pop 2012. A mashup of some of the biggest hits of 2012. Gotye. Fun. Foster the People. Philip Phillips. Even Gangnam Style sneaks in there. I may not like some of the songs in the mix, but I have a memory attached to every single one of them.

Fireworks on the beach!

Our playlist told a story.

As 2012 wraps up and the New Year begins, ask yourself: what kind of story does your music tell? Why? How does it make you feel? What memories do you associate with what songs? Or, best of all, how have you changed since you first heard this music?

We’re a radio station. KNOM is a non-profit, public, radio station, and we play a little bit of everything in the hopes of having something for everyone. What we play and what you listen to matters. If it didn’t, we wouldn’t be here.

In this season of giving, we’d be remiss not to thank the many people who give so much of their time and energy to our radio programming.

KNOM is privileged to feature the voices of a number of community deejays, each of whom hosts his or her own show of 1-2 hours, typically in the evenings. Each show features a different blend of music: from blues to classic rock to Alaska Native music.

Our community DJs – like Lance Johnson, pictured at top – host their shows completely for free; many of them have been volunteering at KNOM even longer than some of our staff. Each week, they come to KNOM out of a love of radio, a dedication to our mission, and a commitment to our community.

While these deejays are unpaid, we thank you for making their spirited volunteer service possible. Because of your support, their voices – and the voices of so many others in our region – can be heard. It’s a service crucially needed: for many of our listeners, KNOM is their only source of music, old or new. (To learn more about our staff, visit this page.)

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This article is part of the Christmas 2012 edition of our newsletter, The Nome Static.

]]>416A failed sensor and a frozen pipehttp://www.knom.org/wp/blog/2012/10/20/a-failed-sensor-and-a-frozen-pipe/
Sat, 20 Oct 2012 15:45:50 +0000http://www.knom.org/mission/wp/?p=295At times, KNOM staff and volunteers face a variety of challenges. Last week brought engineering, computer, and plumbing difficulties, but with the help of professionals and an energetic staff, each problem was identified, and, when possible, solved.

Among our glitches was a malfunctioning temperature sensor at our studio building. The sensor is designed to feed live temperature data to our on-air deejays, so that we can announce local weather conditions as they change. After a visual inspection and a reboot of the computer attached to the sensor, our temperature readings are now accurate and back to normal.

As our repaired temperature sensor will attest, Nome’s temperatures are now consistently falling below the freezing point, and last week this caused a problem: the main water lines leading into the KNOM studio building froze. The water slowed to a trickle, then stopped! Every time there is a plumbing problem, however, our favorite plumbers stop what they are doing (this time it was an installation of a heating system) and come to our aid. The frozen pipe was thawed, and once again, the water is flowing.

We thank all who help to keep the heat and lights on (and all the other utilities working properly!). We so appreciate all they do for us.

]]>295A Day With Headphoneshttp://www.knom.org/wp/blog/2012/10/12/a-day-with-headphones/
http://www.knom.org/wp/blog/2012/10/12/a-day-with-headphones/#commentsFri, 12 Oct 2012 17:00:42 +0000http://www.knom.org/blog/wp/?p=1823Ever wonder what the Music Director does at KNOM? Here’s a look into my typical Monday:

The Music Director position in tangible form.

At 10am I roll into an already hopping studio. Lucus and Daynee are rocking the end of a hilarious morning show that I had the

chance listen to while I was at the gym. They were their usual hilarious selves talking about everything from existentialism to

pancakes. I stroll by Studio C which is occupied with its usual morning guest, Margaret, who is getting her news stories ready for the day. I stick my head and to confirm a meeting with her later today about her KNOM Crew Picks. On my way to complete my most important morning task, grabbing a cup of coffee, I pop into the batcave (the loving name given to Eva’s black-clad recording studio/office) to let Eva know how much I loved her recent profile on a non-profit doing some much needed good in the area.

I make my way upstairs to find three packages on my desk, all sent from both big and small record labels. It’s a good sight as it means I have brand spankin’ new music to screen later. It’s like a miniature musical birthday present moment. To add to the birthday moment, I also find a new music magazine on my desk detailing Alanis Morrisette’s newest album. For once I have a job that warrants reading about music during work hours.

I log into my e-mail to find new music downloads from small labels who have switched from sending tangible recordings my way to doing everything digitally. I start a hefty download of several new singles and albums from various artists and let these kind music promoters know what I thought of last week’s selections provided to me. Nine times out of ten I say something along the lines of “That was great! Send me more!”. You never know what you’re going to get in the mail from week to week. It’s all pretty exciting for a music buff like myself.

We get in everything from digital downloads, to CDs, and even a vinyl now and again.

I open up an audio file that I’ve been working on the past week or so for one of my pre-produced Music Detour shows. This episode has been a lot of fun to piece together as it is about one of my favorite topics – space. While I must admit my reservoir of songs about space hadn’t been completely tapped, Lucus sent me a link to an excellent song to add to the mix. It’s great to be able to blend multiple kinds of music into one show and it helps the amalgamation process to get outside recommendations from others.

It’s lunchtime. I ate a turkey sandwich with spinach, swiss cheese, and spicy mustard. But you probably didn’t need to know that.

Double headphones (like a boss).

I return to work and switch a couple of my Music Detour songs out and edit any mistakes in the script I wrote and recorded for the show. I decide it’s time to drop it until tomorrow – I don’t want to over-edit. In my striving to be ever hip and with-it, I check out what the Billboard charts have to say for the day. I take note that some of the singles I’ve recently added are climbing ever higher on the Billboard Hot 100. That’s good news. I also make a mental note to move some of our song selections that are losing their momentum to a less regular rotation.

As promised, I meet with Margaret to talk about her KNOM Crew picks. Everyone already has a grasp on what their doing here work-wise, but I enjoy it when I’m asked my opinions on music selections. All of my fellow volunteers have an excellent grasp on music knowledge so they can always be tapped for inspiration. They also help me keep in check that I am keeping our system up to date with music that I wouldn’t normally be a fan of.

Margaret tags me on my way back up from the batcave to give me some interview leads for my upcoming Sounding Board show. I’m not a newsie at heart, so I take to heart any advice that the news department has to give. I take one last moment to look at some of the smaller music charts.

Then it’s time for the really fun part of my workday, The Late Afternoon show. Here’s where I get to put all of my musical taste and trivial knowledge to use as I get to hang out with Western Alaska for the remainder of the day.

At the end of the day I leave feeling pretty awesome that my job has me doing something I’ve always love – sharing great music with others and doing my small part to make the world a more groovy place.